Metamorph Maggie
by fordanglia
Summary: Cassie is proud to be a Slytherin. With top marks and a pure family, she must admit that her life is close to perfect. That is, until she notices how good looking her nemesis Sirius Black has gotten over the summer. Who said being a metamorphmagus was easy?
1. A Perfect Disguise

It was mid-October and the magical castle of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was unusually quiet. It was a particularly sunny day, maybe one of the last to come this year, and most of the student body had gone outside to enjoy the last drops of sunlight before the winter. However, there was still some movement inside the castle.

A dark haired girl, by the name Cassandra Harlaw, was walking down the tapestry corridor on the second floor. The torches were casting contorted shadows against the wall as her robes were dangling behind her when she walked. Her long hair was bouncing off her back, in rhythm with her pace. Every couple of minutes she looked behind her, checking that no one was there. It was clear that she did not want anyone to see her.

As if on cue, there was a laugh coming from the corridor corner, and Cassandra quickly hid behind a large, heavy tapestry, going all the way to the floor, showing a witch laughing at the stake while surrounded by fire. Cassie peered out and saw a couple emerge at the end of the corridor.

"Oh, Elend," the girl giggled, holding on to a boy's arm. "Stop it! Someone might see us!" Cassie snorted internally. Damn right, someone might see you! Someone might be lurking behind the tapestry. The boy, who Cassie presumed was named Elend, stopped only a couple of feet from Cassie. He swooped the girl in his arms, twirled her around and lowered her to the ground, holding her firmly. "Stop what?" Elend teased. When the girl didn't answer, Cassie saw him lean in and kiss her.

 _Seriously?_ Cassie thought. That was too icky and way too cliché for her taste. The girl, on the other hand, seemed to like it, and kissed Elend back. Cassie hoped this wouldn't turn into a snogging session. She did not have that kind of patience today. That is to say she was going to be late, and she hated being late. Her narrow hiding space felt cramped and the tapestry, which were only inches from her nose, smelled like her grandmother's old moth ball closet. Briefly, she looked down and saw that her fingernails had turned blue from her stress.

Cursing herself, Cassie took a couple of deep breaths, trying to calm down. Of course, she still had thirty minutes, so she could afford to hide a little longer. Come to think about it, she would much rather prefer to stay behind the tapestry all evening. She dreaded going to detention. Never, in her five years and one month at Hogwarts, had she ever gotten a detention. Except that one time in second grade, but no one knew about that. That was exactly how Cassie preferred it. How could she scold her fellow Slytherins for getting detention when she herself had one this very evening?

Cassie knew for a fact that Evan Rosier also had detention today. She had heard him complain about it all week. Cassie had no idea why though, that much he wouldn't say. Dessa and the other girls had been just as confused as to why he wouldn't tell them, but Snape and Mulciber had been awfully quiet. Strangely, she was kind of disappointed at Evan for not telling her. She thought they were close, but apparently he did not feel the same. He had probably just been out late, snogging that girl in Ravenclaw. Surely, it was no big deal, but Cassie wanted to know. Why didn't he tell her?

Cassie had to remind herself that she wasn't planning on telling Evan about her detention either. She hoped she would come early, finish quickly, and then leave before Evan arrived. _Bloody Black_ , she thought. It was all his fault anyway.

Cassie had been one of the last to leave Potions class yesterday. She had just left the classroom when she bumped into Potter, Black and their rat faced sidekick. The corridor had been dark and empty, except for the boys. Down in the dungeons, the air was always cold and moldy at this time of year, and Cassie had instantly felt a shiver. Bantering with the Gryffindors was a common occurrence as Cassie sometimes went looking for Black and his friends when she was bored, just so she could curse them and have some fun. Usually, she would have Evan or Dessa with her, but yesterday she had been all alone.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't my favorite Slytherin," Black had said, shaking his head. His dark hair almost falling into his eyes. Cassie had remained silent, staring at him. He had really beautiful grey eyes. She had noticed so on the train ride back to Hogwarts this year. How come she had never seen that before?

"Silence suits you, Harlaw." Black had complimented while taking out his wand. "Maybe we should make it permanent, what do you say, Prongs?" Potter had agreed and taken out his own wand too.

In Cassie's opinion, Prongs was a really stupid nickname for Potter, seeing as it made no sense what so ever. But then again, the Gryffindors didn't have much sense, so maybe it was fitting after all. When the boys had drawn their wands, Cassie had taken a firm grip around her wand as well, scanning her brain for something that could help her. Just the other day they had started learning silent spells in Defense Against the Dark Arts, but even so, Cassie was sure that the boys had already mastered the art. She had been so screwed until...

"What's going on here?" Cassie had been saved by the bell, literally. Professor Bell, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor had turned the corner just in time, the clicking of her high heels echoing loudly in the hollow corridor. However, the boys had done nothing. Oh, how Cassie had longed for them to get punished for something. Suddenly, an idea come to her.

" _Furnunculus_ ," she had whispered, aiming her wand at herself. With small pops, an army of boils had erupted on her face. Cassie had screamed, yelling profanities at Black and Potter, who had just been standing there, with a mixture of horror and confusion on their faces.

"Professor!" Cassie had cried. "They hexed me, professor!"

When she thought about this incident in retrospect, she had to admit that maybe she had gone a tad far with all her wailing and crying. Nevertheless, it had worked. All three boys had gotten separate detentions, and Cassie had been very smug for about two minutes. Two minutes, that was the time it took for the Gryffindors to leave, muttering under their breaths and scowling at Cassie, who had just been smirking.

Unfortunately, Bell had seen right through her little act, and had given her detention as well. At least she hadn't done it while the boys were still there. That would have been mortifying, to say the least. And speaking of mortified, Cassie was still scolding herself for using the pimple jinx on herself in the presence of Black. It had made her face ugly.

"Are you all well, Miss Harlaw?" the young professor had asked, as they were leaving the dungeons. Concern and confusion had been imminent in her voice. "Your eyes seem a bit pinky."

Instinctively, Cassie had shielded her eyes. In the future, she had to be more careful when getting riled up. "Must have been the jinx, but I'm fine, thank you professor," she had dismissed the matter politely. Looking down at her hands now, she was pleased to discover that her fingernails were back to normal.

Cassie noticed that Elend and his girl had left, and the corridor was now free for her to use again. As she walked down to the greenhouses, she wondered why Bell had given the boys detention when she knew they hadn't done anything. Probably because she liked Cassie. She and Cassie had really hit it off, and Bell was one of Cassie's favorite teachers. Also, the Gryffindor boys did make a lot of commotion in her classes, especially Black and Potter. Maybe she was still mad about the dung bomb prank they had pulled in her office last week. It had never been proven, but everyone knew Black and Potter were behind it.

As Cassie reached greenhouse one, she saw professor Sprout at a desk in the corner, scribbling on some parchment. Cassie scanned the room and wished on Merlin's mighty magic that Evan was late, or better yet, had forgotten about the whole detention. The latter was highly unlikely, as she had been reminding him of it all week, teasing him. Cassie cleared her throat when she neared Sprout's desk.

"Ah, miss Harlaw, early as always." Professor Sprout was a young plump woman, with a kind face. Today she was wearing a yellow pointy wizard hat and a pair of turquoise, uneven glasses. "You are going to be repotting mandrakes today." Cassie looked around perplexed, she couldn't see any mandrakes. "They are in greenhouse three," the professor explained. "Gloves and earmuffs are at the entrance. You will need to repot ten of them, after that just tap the pots with your wand, and you can leave. Remember to keep the earmuffs on all the time, eh? Need I remind you that their cry will knock you out?" Cassie remembered perfectly well their class in second grade, when poor Ariadne Rover had fainted. She had tried to wipe sweat from her forehead, accidentally moving her earmuffs. Cassie wasn't surprised. Rover was, after all, a useless mudblood.

Cassie pulled on her gloves and checked that her earmuffs were tightly secured. She was not going to be like Rover and faint because of some bloody plants, at detention nonetheless. The table was filled with sleeping mandrakes in pots, all with a bigger pot next to them. In addition, there were huge bags with soil under the table. Cassie knew that when she started, the first she would wake was going to wake all the others with it's screams and then she would be stuck in a bloody mandrake choir.

Taking a deep breath, Cassie took a firm grip around the stems of the first mandrake, and pulled it out with all her strength. It looked like an overgrown baby and she needed a couple of pulls before she managed to free it from its pot. She was grateful for the earmuffs. Quickly, she lifted it over to the biggest pot, sprinkled some sleeping powder over the plant, and started filling the pot with soil. It was hard and tiresome work. No wonder Rover had sweated like a dirty pig. Cassie understood perfectly well why this was detention work. In second grade, they had just potted one or two mandrakes each, to learn. This was labor.

In the corner of her eye, Cassie saw someone approaching the greenhouse. She could almost hear the laughter at the Slytherin table tomorrow when Evan told them about their detention together. Drops of water were racing down the windows of the moist greenhouse, reflecting her mood. She should never have been so overconfident towards him, because now it was coming back to bite her.

At that exact moment, Cassandra Harlaw wished she was someone else. It wasn't often she wished that, because her life was damn fine, but she was dreading the teasing to come. If only there was a way she could make herself invisible and serve her detention in peace.

A thought hit Cassie like lightning and she almost slapped her temple with her dirty, gloved hand. Sometimes she could be really short-sighted. She was glad Black wasn't in her head at that moment. She was mortified at her own stupidity. Why Black was the first person she didn't want to see her when she was acting dumb, she did not know. Or... she knew, but preferred not to think about it. She and Black would never happen. He hated her, and she, presumably, hated him to. Cassie wasn't even sure if she wanted them to happen. It was just physical attraction. Just physical. Yes. She had to remind herself of that. She briefly wondered what detention Black had gotten before she pulled herself together to face her more imminent problem. She now knew how to escape being mocked by Evan and all his followers, or rather the whole Slytherin house.

Cassie had a gift. A gift she seldom spoke of, and seldom used. She had been born a metamorphmagus. No one knew of her powers except a couple of her family members. They had told her to keep it a secret when she was young. Her father had said that it was a powerful gift, but even more powerful when kept a secret. That way no one would know that she could change appearance at will and therefore she could hide in plain sight and take her enemies by surprise. Sometimes, her father really sounded like a man getting ready for war. Cassie knew there was something going on with a dark lord, but she doubted it would go that far.

Through the foggy windows of the greenhouse, she saw the door handle move. A few seconds later, a silhouette was moving inside the narrow entry room. It was now or never. She saw him, or her, put on earmuffs and gloves. Her heart started to race. She was actually going to use her metamorphpowers in school! Cassie was both excited and scared, but she knew she had to do it before the person entered.

"One," she breathed through the heavy smell of black soil.

"Two"

Here we go.

"Three"

Her hair turned blonde, her nose narrowed, her lips swelled slightly and freckles popped out on her nose. For good measure she also enlarged her breasts. Why not look hot when she could?

Not a moment too soon, Evan entered the greenhouse. He noticed her at once, and when he did, he did something so unexpected, so unlike the Evan she knew. He winked at her.

Startled, Cassie wished she had a mirror so she could se her disguise. She was fearing that she looked like a complete and utter bimbo, without an ounce of intelligence. She should've made herself a redhead instead. However, then she would look like a Weasley, and she did not want to look like that disgusting Tessie Weasley with her smelly dress robes. No, she would have to be a blonde. Anyway, there wasn't much she could do now, seeing as Evan had seen her and was now seated on the far end of the table, eyeing her curiously.

It was weird to pretend not to know Evan, but she went on with her work, and finished repotting her first mandrake in peace. When she started on the next, she couldn't endure any longer. She had to shrink her breasts. They were too big and every time she leaned over to get dirt, her hands kept pushing against them. Also, her bra was way too small and her shoulders hurt. Merlin, it was tiresome to be blessed with big breasts.

While she was shoving soil into the pots, three more students arrived. The first was a slender looking Slytherin. Cassie guessed a second year. Through the damp air of the greenhouse, she saw her sit down next to Evan, who paid her no attention at all, as he was still shooting glances at Cassie. The next person was the sixth year Ravenclaw, Damian Hastings. They had potions together. She rarely took the time to learn unimportant people's names, but Damian was in her year and very good at Potions. Needless to say, his name had stuck.

At the sight of the third person, Cassie's heart skipped a beat. His dark hair was falling naturally into his eyes and his grey eyes were overlooking the room. For the first time in her life, Cassie allowed herself to properly check him out.

He was wearing a tight t-shirt with a picture of a wolf howling to the moon, his biceps almost too large to fit, and dark jeans. His uniform sweater was hanging lazily over his shoulder. He was even more fit than she remembered from the time she had seen him swimming in the lake before summer. Even tough he had an arrogant demeanor and was totally not the guy for her, she couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to run her hands trough his hair. To have him touching her waist, pulling her closer. To feel his kisses on her neck...

Cassie quickly pulled herself back to reality. She should not be thinking like that. He did not want her. He hated her. On second thought, she was not Cassie right now. She was blonde Cassie. Sirius Black didn't hate blonde Cassie. She could have some fun. A mischievous smirk appeared on her lips. Of course, she wasn't planning on doing anything, but it would be fun to escape her inhibitions, if only for a little while.

It seemed like Black had noticed her checking him out, because he had seated himself on the other side of the table, facing her. She didn't dare look at him, and kept on working with her soil. She felt like a coward. What was she afraid of? She was blond Cassie, the flirty bimbo now. She could do anything she wanted and her reputation wouldn't be compromised.

She slowly lifted her gaze and was met by a pair of twinkling grey eyes. This was going to be great for flirting practice, she reassured herself. If she were to ruin it, she would never disguise herself again and the problem would be solved. She kept eye contact for about three seconds before she looked away.

Black went back to being busy potting his mandrakes, and Cassie stole a glance at him. She kept it there until he noticed her. Cassie was glad she had the earmuffs. The total silence gave her an eerie feeling, as it felt like she had a bubble over her head. She had no idea what she would say if he could hear her. Again, Cassie kept the stare for three seconds before she looked down. She felt butterflies in her stomach. She really was blond Cassie now. Regular, dark haired Cassie would never flirt so openly. She wanted to laugh out loud at her daring self.

Soon she felt Black's eyes on her. She kept him waiting for a couple of seconds before she looked at him as well. One... two... three. She counted silently. Instead of looking away, she now pulled the corners of her mouth upwards, trying to make a flirty smile. To her astonishment, Black winked back at her. She couldn't help herself, she grinned widely. There goes her mysterious, flirty posture.

Cassie had to admit, flirting with Black was a lot of fun. Their staring game continued on for the next seven pottings. Her tummy was warm and she felt more giddy than ever. Sirius Black was sitting right opposite her, having no idea who she actually was. She had a good laugh when one of Black's mandrakes did resistance and fought very hard not to be put in the new pot. However, she was quickly silenced when Black threw a lump of dirt her way. Cassie tried to time her last mandrake repotting with Black, so that they would finish at the same time.

It seemed like Evan had finished, as he had risen from his seat, and was currently walking towards them. He had short, brown hair, and a mouth that was naturally turned in a scowl. When he reached Cassie and Black, it seemed like he slowed his pace, facing an internal struggle. Then he just shot Black a mean look, and marched out of the greenhouse. Perplexed, Cassie pondered on how different her friends behaved when she was not around. Evan was usually a very confident boy, but he had definitely not acted that way now.

When Black finished his last pot, her heart sunk. Now they wouldn't be able to leave together. She still had to fill half of her last pot with soil. She wanted to curse the mandrake's whining face for being so unruly and throwing away all the new soil she applied. She watched Black stand up and head for the door. It had been fun while it lasted, she thought, but to her amazement, Black didn't leave. He was coming to her!

Blonde Cassie smiled thankfully at Black when he came up next to her. He reached out and grabbed the mandrake so that it couldn't move. Cassie quickly filled the pot and soon they were both standing outside the greenhouse, breathing fresh air. It seemed like the sun had just set, because the sky had a pinkish deep color and the air was much colder. That poor Slytherin girl was still inside, but Cassie didn't care. It was every man for himself. Being in Slytherin had really taught her that.

Now that they had both their hearing back, Cassie suddenly got nervous. What was she going to say? The only things she had ever said to Black were profanities and curses.

"You're awfully slow at potting mandrakes," Black finally broke the silence.

Regular Cassie would have blushed at this statement. Actually, she would have blushed at any statement that said she was not the best. Sometimes she would get angry too, and maybe shoot some hexes just to calm down. But blonde Cassie did no such thing. She just looked right back at Black and said "And you're awfully bad at giving compliments."

Unexpectedly, Black started laughing. This was the last thing he would have done if regular Cassie had said the same thing. He would've hexed her into oblivion. Blonde Cassie just smiled sweetly, playing the part.

"So you want compliments, huh?"

"Yes, please."

"I like your honesty," he teased. When Cassie put her hands on her hips, trying to look displeased, Black just laughed even more. His laugh was pitched and ringing, almost like a bark, but Cassie loved it. Blonde Cassie loved it, that is, make no mistake.

"Come on," Black said, taking her hand. She wanted to giggle. Oh, what the hell, she went all in. Cassie giggled. For the first time in forever, Cassandra giggled because she was holding the hand of a boy, just like that Elend's girl earlier. It felt exhilarating.

Black led her up a flight of stairs, making sure she skipped a trick step, trough a corridor with old engravings on the walls, and into another corridor. Cassie wondered where he was taking her, seeing as he did not know to which common room she was headed. Finally, Black led her into an empty corridor with a patterned wall to wall carpet which muffled the sound of their footsteps.

He turned towards Cassie and tucked a strain of hair behind her ear.

"You have beautiful eyes," he complimented, sincerely, all humor gone from his voice.

Cassie smiled. Her eyes were the only part she hadn't changed. Mostly because she had just forgotten them in the rush. Black placed his hands on her shoulders and stepped closer. Slowly he trailed them down her arms until he held her hands.

Cassie couldn't speak. She couldn't think. She could just be. In the moment. Black lowered his head slightly, looking at her, and all Cassie could do, was look back at him, mesmerized. His forehead touched hers, and she could feel the warmth of his skin. In anticipation, her heart skipped several beats. Then his nose were against hers and she could feel his breathing as his mouth was just inches from hers.

Suddenly their moment was interrupted by some voices down the corridor, which sounded an awful lot like Elend and his Giggle Girl. Cassie quickly pulled away, sobering up in an instant.

"I better get back to my common room," she said, feeling a bit disappointed and wanting to curse Elend. "It was nice meeting you."

"Wait," Black said, grabbing her hand. "I don't even know your name."

"I know."

She had started a dangerous game. 


	2. When at Breakfast

The next morning, Cassandra woke to the peaceful sound of birdsong. For a moment, she just stayed in bed, enjoying the morning. It had the prospects of a beautiful day. Rays of sunlight were already streaming through her curtains and the air was filled with the thickness of morning warmth. She listened to the invisible birds for a couple of more minutes before she silenced them with a flick of her wand. Her new alarm charm was better than she expected.

With a smile on her lips, she tip toed over to the bathroom and into shower. She kept reliving yesterday's events. Indeed, it felt like a dream. Absentmindedly, Cassie lifted her hand, with nails the pink color of a flamingo, and touched her lips. The very lips that had been only inches from Black's the other night. Did he think about her too? The thought made her heart jump.

After the shower Cassie dried her hair with a quick drying spell and looked at herself in the mirror. The pale face of a sixteen year old girl grinned back at her. It seemed like the grin had permanently plastered itself on her face since yesterday. The girl had brown eyes with a hint of green if you looked closely. This morning her eyes were especially bright because of her good mood. Her long, dark chocolate colored hair was currently hanging flat and lifeless. With a sigh, she decided she would have to ask Adelhaide, her fellow dorm mate, if she knew any good spells to give her hair volume. Adelhaide knew everything there was to know about makeup. Cassie didn't care for her that much. Mostly because of her shrill voice and the sea of Witch Weekly magazines she had spread out over the whole dorm, but even so, sometimes the girl could come in handy.

Cassie was indeed a metamorphmagus, but that didn't mean that she could style hair. She could change length and color, but not do braids and such. Also, her father had never given up an opportunity to remind her not to use her powers. It would have been suspicious for her to change appearance every day, according to her whims. Cassie could still remember the day she had to decide which look she would have to stick to at Hogwarts. As a child, she loved having lime green hair with pink tips. When she felt really energized she would make her hair look like a lion's mane, and run around the house, looking like a wild and unruly beast. Once, she had dressed up like her aunt Maggie and yelled at her father for not letting her have pudding. Cassie strongly suspected that her father wasn't that fond of his sister. Needless to say, she hadn't gotten pudding for a week. Alas, she had chosen a darker shade as the rest of her family had similar colors. That way, no one would suspect her of being anything out of the ordinary.

Still in a good mood, Cassie left the bathroom to find a quiet dormitory. Looking at the time, she wasn't surprised to discover that Adelhaide and Nina had already gone to breakfast or that Dessa was still in deep sleep. Cassie could never understand how she always overslept. How many points she had lost for tardiness or eating breakfast in class, Cassie had no idea. For a moment, she thought about leaving Dessa to sleep. It would've served her right, always being late for everything. But then again, Slytherin didn't deserve losing another set of points.

With a few steps, Cassie had marched over to Dessa's bed and pulled her drapes open. The sight of her so called best friend drooling on the pillow was actually quite funny. Cassie let out a small chuckle before she poked Dessa's arm with a burning jinx. A faint smell of burnt flesh filled the air and her eyes burst open almost instantly.

"You bitch! Never wake me up like that again. Do you hear me, you bloody hag, just wait until I..."

In a matter of seconds, Cassie slipped out the door as a jinx missed her by less than an inch. She smirked as she heard that Dessa was still cursing. There were still several days until the Hogsmeade trip. Cassie was confident that Dessa would be happy again until then, so that they could spend the day as planned.

* * *

Light filled the Great Hall from the cloudless ceiling as a parliament of owls entered, together with the daily post. Cassie had seated herself with Evan and Mulciber and was currently nibbling on a slice of bacon when a letter came rushing through the air. It dropped on a plate right in front of her, showering her with breadcrumbs. She recognized her father's neat and delicate handwriting and apprehensively opened the letter.

 _Cassandra,_

 _I have not heard from you in quite a while. You know how I resent being left in the dark. How are you doing in school? If you are still having problems with transfiguration, I suggest you find yourself a tutor sooner rather than later. I would hate for you to be anything but the best._

 _Your mother and I are looking forward to seeing you for Christmas. She is counting down the days already. You should write to her, she would appreciate that._

 _Also, there is someone I would like you to meet. Alas, I cannot tell you more right now, but I will explain when I see you._

 _Be careful with your special skills. We only want your best._

 _Write back soon,_

 _Your father_

Cassie stared at the letter. It was the usual why-don't-you-write-more-often and be-careful-with-your-powers nonsense, except for the part about him wanting to introduce her to someone. Who could that be? She knew all her father's friends and coworkers, they always met at the Malfoy Annual Christmas Ball. Dread filled her when she considered the possibility that her father had found her a suitor. He had been nagging her more regularly this summer about her love life. However, she doubted that her father would be pleased if she came home with someone like Sirius Black, the notorious blood traitor.

Without thinking, she searched the Gryffindor table for Black. She had no idea what she would do if she saw him, probably nothing, but she couldn't help looking. It was like an invisible pull she couldn't control. She found him seated at the Gryffindor table, telling a particularly dramatic story to Lupin. His hands were all over the place and his hair was fiercely flying in all directions. In Cassie's opinion, Lupin was very dull. All he did was read and he often left school to go home. She had no idea people actually did that. After five years at Hogwarts, how could he still be homesick?

Black looked away from his conversation and his eyes suddenly locked with Cassie's. His look instantly turned grouchy. He spat angrily into his empty bowl and turned back towards Lupin. Cassie reasoned that she shouldn't be that surprised. Obviously, he was still angry about her giving him detention. Hopefully he wouldn't retaliate the favor too soon.

Dessa found Cassie playing with her food while pretending to listen to Evan and Mulciber debate Quidditch tactics.

"I tell you, Col, you should practice the Bludger Backbeat more often. It would make your game less predictable." Evan was stating, matter of factly.

"It's hard to pull it off with good precision. Last practice I almost hit Bulstrode right in the face," Mulciber replied and took a big bite of his toast.

"Wouldn't have made a difference if you did," Dessa chipped in cheerily, slipping into a seat between Cassie and Mulciber. "He would still be ugly."

They all chuckled at the comment. No one could deny that the fifth year had been condemned with an unfortunate appearance. After helping herself with another slice of bacon, Cassie turned to Dessa.

"I am not going to apologize for this morning," she said.

"Good, because I am not going to thank you."

"Now that's settled," Cassie started. "Guess who I ran into at the common room last night."

"Who?" Dessa asked excitedly, the morning dispute already forgotten. "Wait, don't tell me, was it Nathan?" Her eyes sparkled. Nathan Avery was a tall, dark and handsome seventh year from a wealthy, pureblood family. He was what every girl would describe as a perfect catch, and he knew it. Just like half of the school population, Dessa had a huge crush on him.

"What? No, for Merlin's sake, forget about him, Dessa."

"I will not. He walked me to class on Monday, you know."

"I know," Cassie sighed softly. "You've told me about five thousand times."

"Fine. Tell me then, who did you run into?"

"Evan and Mulciber." Cassie said, raising her voice so that the boys would hear her, still a bit irritated from last night. "They were doing something really secretive in the corner, practically chased me out of the common room when they saw me. What were you two whispering about?" Dessa raised her eyebrows as Cassie turned towards the two boys, who had suddenly become very quiet.

Mulciber seemed at a loss of words from being caught off guard. His eyes darted to Evan for help, but Evan had his eyes fixed on Cassie.

"Nothing," he said shortly. "Why were you out so late anyway?" Cassie had to fight the urge to blush. She couldn't exactly tell them that she had been at detention, let alone that she had been flirting with Black. She stole a glance at him from across the table. The mere memory made her giddy, but she pulled herself together.

"Don't change the subject."

"Erh, we were just discussing, uhm, his detention! Yes. Apparently, there was this pretty, blond..." Mulciber was abruptly silenced by a death glare from Evan.

"It was nothing, nothing of your concern," he repeated to Cassie, brushing it off a bit too nonchalantly for Cassie's taste. She was about to press the subject further, she had the feeling that none of them were being entirely truthful, when she noticed someone approaching the party.

Nathan Avery was making his way from further up the table. His tall figure walked with a majestic stride and the air around him oozed of money. Lovegood would probably say that it was because the air was filled with nargles, but that lunatic wasn't exactly what Cassie would call a reliable source.

As excepted, Dessa quickly straightened her robes and fussed with her hair. Evan and Mulicber sat up straighter and, to Cassie's astonishment, so did she. Frankly, she was a little disappointed at herself for doing so, but then again, she didn't want Avery to look at her with his disapproving look.

"Odessa," Avery greeted Dessa. "How are you today?"

"I'm... Fine, thank you for asking," she half stammered, grinning from ear to ear. Cassie wanted to snort at her friend's silliness, but was at the moment too surprised at seeing Avery talking to her.

"What are you doing this weekend?" Avery asked her with a smile so charming that it could make any girl swoon. Even Cassie felt a little jelly legged, and it wasn't even directed at her.

"As you know, there is a Hogsmeade trip on Saturday," he went on. "I want you to go with me." It seemed more like a command than a request, but Dessa was ecstatic.

"Of course! I would love to!" she answered, her face beaming. "I can't wait!"

"Good, I'll see you then." Avery nodded his goodbyes to the rest of the group before he continued on with his stride down the table, leaving them all gaping.

As the shock slowly faded away, Cassie felt her good mood disappear as well. She and Dessa had agreed to go to Hogsmeade together. Dessa had finally agreed to go visit the shrieking shack. Neither of them had been there before, seeing as they had always agreed to do other, more important activities. In reality, they had both been a little frightened by the spirits haunting the place, but Cassie would never in her lifetime admit to that. Of course, they weren't scared anymore. Mostly, Cassie had wanted to go because it had been something they had planned to do together, and they rarely got the chance to hang out, just the two of them.

Irrational anger flooded her veins as she looked at Dessa, who was currently rambling on about Avery and how he should win the Witch Weekly's Most Charming Smile Award. The boys were now regarding her with new interest, but Cassie had lost hers. Dessa hadn't even thought of her when she accepted the invitation. Cassie clenched her knuckles and noticed in horror that her fingernails had turned deep red. Quickly, she hid her hands in her pockets. She didn't like being left out, especially not by her best friend at Hogwarts. She supposed nobody liked feeling that way, but that didn't exactly make it any better. What was she going to do now? She did not want to go to the village by herself, that would not look good. Neither did she want to stay behind at the castle, because that meant defeat.

When they finished their breakfast, Cassie left the Great Hall in bitterness with Dessa, who was chattering nonstop about how romantic her date with Avery was going to be. They took a right turn at the top of the marble staircase and headed towards the third floor and their first class of the day. Cassie knew she should be happy for her friend, but at the same time, she couldn't shake the bitter feeling. She was quite surprised at herself for reacting this way. She didn't even know she cared that much about Dessa and their friendship. Would Dessa, if Cassie was in deep trouble, drop her date to help her?

Cassie was brooding deeply as they passed a portrait of two old witches bickering about who had the pointiest wizards hat. In fact, she was so lost in thought that she failed to notice four mischievous Gryffindors walking right behind them. The very Gryffindors she had spent half her morning searching for.


	3. The Making of Maggie

"Oi, Harlaw!" sounded a sing-song voice behind Cassie, ringing over the noise in the corridor. Her heart leapt. She knew that voice. It was the voice that gave her goosebumps, and not in a bad way. She fought a sudden urge to grin and turned around.

"Black," Cassie said coldly. In the crowded hallway before her stood all four of the Gryffindor sixth years, but she decided that naming all four of them would take too long.

" - and minions." Dessa supplemented smugly and Cassie wanted to roll her eyes. Dessa always managed to say the most dumb and incompetent things. She should just keep her mouth shut and let Cassie do the talking as Cassie was much better at this.

"Hey, I am not a minion!" Potter said. Silently, Cassie agreed with him. However, the damage was done. Cassie hated correcting other people's mistakes. Especially Dessa's, as Dessa seemed to make an awful lot of them.

"Maybe you're not, but Ratface there surely is," said Cassie said, nodding in Pettigrew's direction.

"It's Wormtail," Pettigrew whispered faintly.

"Come again?" said Cassie, even though she had heard him perfectly fine. Their new nicknames were rather ludicrous and she would never miss this good an opportunity to make fun of them.

"Wormtail," Potter said loud and clear. Cassie chuckled and not surprisingly, Dessa joined in.

"Wormtail?" Cassie asked with a laugh. "How on earth did you get that horrendous nickname?"

"Yeah, is it because you're as filthy as a worm?" Sweet Dessa, when would she learn to keep quiet?

"Watch it," growled Black. "Wormtail is a much better wizard than you and your prejudiced family will ever be." Cassie was quite sure that comment was directed at her, as Dessa's family remained neutral on the subject of blood purity.

"Not to mention the noble and most ancient house of Black," Cassie said sarcastically and put her hands on her hips, trying to look intimidating. It was hard, especially when Black was standing there in front of her with his tall, muscular body and clear, grey eyes. Of course, his eyes were now cold, as they were directed at her, but Cassie didn't care. She didn't even care what the argument was about, she just enjoyed being near him.

"I am nothing like my family." Black raised his wand. Apparently Cassie had hit a nerve.

Cassie opened her mouth to reply but was caught off by the bell. Class was about to start. "You're lucky I didn't get you detention this time. Come on, Dessa." And with that she turned on her heel, swinging her long dark hair behind her and marched towards the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom.

* * *

Professor Bell was a tall, young woman with short pixie hair. Even though Cassie and Dessa barely made it to class, she said nothing. However, five points were taken from Gryffindor for tardiness when the boys rushed in. This made Cassie like her new teacher even more. She really hoped Bell would stay for another year, as Cassie and her classmates were overly tired of getting new professors every year.

Cassie noticed that Potter and Lupin found two empty seats in front of the classroom and Black, together with Pettigrew, seated himself right behind her and Dessa. Cassie fought the urge to turn around and continue their banter.

Today, Bell spent over half of the class talking about defense against dementors. Strangely, Cassie found the subject exiting. Maybe it was because she liked her professor, or the fact that she wanted to see Black's face when she produced a patronus before him, but nevertheless, Cassie paid close attention. Apparently only a really strong happy memory would conjure the patronus.

Professor Bell instructed them all to write down at least five happy memories that they believed they could use, and Cassie, motivated as she was, found her quill and parchment. She placed the quill at the ready, but then stopped. What would she write? She ran through a series of memories in her head, but could not find a single one that stood out as happier than the others.

Cassie peaked over at Dessa. "What are you writing?"

"Oh, you know, the usual. When I got my Hogwarts acceptance letter, when I did magic for the first time, my birthday last year. What about you?"

Cassie sighed. She had those memories as well, but hers weren't happy. Of course, they weren't sad either, they just were. Her admittance to Hogwarts had been expected for as long as she could remember. It had become just another formality. Additionally, the first time she had done magic she had set her mother's hair on fire. Even though her mother had been delighted, her father had gotten really mad and protective of his wife. It was not a particularly happy memory, to say the least. She could still see his angry red face as he locked her in her room.

"I - err, I don't know," she admitted.

"You don't know how to write, Harlaw?" Pettigrew teased from his seat behind her. Maybe she should start calling him Wormtail as well? She had no idea what had gotten into that boy today. Usually he never said anything.

"Shut it, Ratface," Cassie snapped without bothering to turn around. Oh well, Ratface was much more suiting anyway. She looked back down on her paper, which was still blank.

"Just like I expected," Black said loudly. "Heartless people can't get happy."

Cassie spun around. Black sat balancing his chair on its back legs, looking half bored, half smug. Cassie was not heartless, surely he knew that. He was just teasing, like they used to do. However, his eyes bore no traces of humor and Cassie detected a strange sincerity in his voice. Was that actually what he thought of her? Suddenly Cassy found herself speechless. This time Black was the one to hit a nerve. She felt her eyes sting. No, no, no, this was not happening. She could not cry. Cassandra Harlaw never cried.

"And I thought simpletons like you couldn't speak, but here you are, once again blabbering nonsense," said Dessa with a nonchalant tone and turned her back to Black.

If Cassie hadn't been as upset as she was, she would have been really impressed with her friend. This time Cassie was glad she hadn't kept quiet. Still, she couldn't shake the heavy lump that had formed in her throat. She had no idea why a comment like that had suddenly gotten under her skin. She shouldn't have thought that Black could see through her facade. Had she hoped he would see her for what she truly was? But then again, what was she? She had spent so long being cold and detached that maybe this was what she had become; a girl with not happy memories.

Her eyes started to water. Panic struck Cassie like lightning. No one could see her cry, that would be even more mortifying than a thousand detentions harvesting flobberworm mucus in her underwear. She looked up, trying to make her tears disappear by gravity, but they just seemed to fill up her eye sockets. She had to get out, and that fast. In a swift movement she brushed all her belongings into her bag and was up on her feet. She met Professor Bell's confused expression and was about to excuse herself when she realized that her voice would most probably crack and give her away. Without a word, Cassie stormed out of the classroom, feeling the first tears drop.

* * *

An hour later, Cassie was still hiding in the broom closet at the second floor. Filled with everything but brooms, the closet felt extremely cramped. There were big dusty buckets, old paintings and a deformed suit of armor, which seemed to have the hiccups. Cassie sat there quietly, trying not to think about anything. It proved to be an impossible task. Why couldn't she find a single memory that made her happy? "Lumos," she whimpered. Cassie looked down and noticed that her fingers, along with her nails had turned blue. She was not surprised, she had let her emotions thrive freely. Seconds later, when she checked her hair, it had turned white as snow.

The bell rang, but Cassie did not feel like going to yet another class and listen to insults. Dessa would probably feel lonely. but Cassie predicted she would manage. Adelhaide took the class as well, and Dessa got on quite well with her, unlike Cassie. Therefore, instead of running to class, Cassie remained seated in her broom closed, welcoming the solidarity. It was a rare occurrence these days.

Taking a few deep breaths, Cassie tried to calm herself. So what if she wasn't happy? So what if Black didn't like her? She would just have to get over it. Black was a blood traitor after all. Cassie could make new happy memories without him. She reprimanded herself for letting herself care that much. She had to keep her emotions in check, if only to protect her powers.

When her stomach growled, Cassie realized it had to be time for lunch. However, she was not in the mood for being questioned by Dessa, or anyone else for that matter. She had not yet come up with a good lie as to why she left class in that way. Therefore, Cassie found another solution. Once again she transformed into the blond girl she had been at detention last night. At once, she felt much more at ease. It felt nice to escape her life, if only for a little while.

Walking the hallways of the castle when no one recognized her was a new experience. Cassie had gotten so used to being sent scowls or frightened looks, that this new situation confused her. How was she going to behave? This was new territory, a dangerous turn of events. There were so many students around her, and she half expected one of them to call her out. However, nothing of that sort happened. No one even looked at her now.

When Blond Cassie reached the Great Hall, the smell of freshly baked bread filled her nose. People were chatting and laughing with their friends, and Cassie was suddenly unsure of where to sit. For some reason, the Slytherin table didn't seem that appealing. It was filled with people who suddenly looked menacing and sour. Instinctively she scanned the dining hall for Black, but then stopped herself. She was done with Black. He never said anything nice to her anyway. Proud of herself for thinking so reasonable, Blond Cassie decided to go sit by the Ravenclaw table.

She sat down at an empty spot, excited to finally eat in peace. The best part of it was that no one would think that Regular Cassie was friendless for doing so. She filled her plate to the edge with pumpkin tarts, crisps, crackers with jelly and everything else Regular Cassie was too proud to be seen eating.

While she was enjoying her delicious meal, Black and his gang entered the Great Hall. It wasn't actually Black's gang. Cassie suspected they all thought themselves equals. They made their way towards the Gryffindor table, which was right next to Ravenclaw's. From the corner of her eye, Cassie watched as they seated themselves behind her. Her heart skipped a beat. Black had his back to hers. If they both turned, they would be face to face. She could remember oh so clearly the other day when their faces had been only inches away from each other. She sighed. So much for trying to forget about him.

" - really Sirius, I have no idea why she left. And frankly, I don't care, I don't like her that much." Cassie recognized Potter's voice and arched her back, trying to hear them more clearly.

"Me neither," Black said quickly, "but you have to agree it was weird. I've never seen her act anything like that before."

"You talk as though you know her. For all we know she might be downright crazy." Cassie felt her anger rise at Potter, and took a few deep breaths. It would not be prudent to have her hair suddenly turn red.

"We've had classes with her for five years, James," Sirius said. The last part of his sentence had been muffled and Cassie reasoned that he had probably taken a bite of a toast. With this clever reasoning, there was no doubt that Blond Cassie belonged in Ravenclaw.

"I'm just saying," said Potter.

"What did you say to her again?" This time Lupin was speaking.

"Just some insult about being a heartless bitch... which she is."

There was a pause in which Lupin appeared to be thinking. "If I were to guess, I'd say she was offended," he said with his calm voice. Cassie had to give it to him, he had seen right through her. That Lupin was smarter than he looked.

"But that was the whole point!" Black exclaimed, and Cassie heard something that resembled a fist hitting the table and the chatter of plates. There was an "auch" followed by a "oh, sorry, Wormy" before the convention continued.

"I think she got as she deserved." Potter's tone was harsh, and Cassie was quite taken aback by his hostility. She had no idea Potter hated her that much.

"You're bias," Ratface said, chuckling, "you're still mad because she hexed Lily in third year."

"That's right! I'd totally forgotten that!" Cassie couldn't help but grin at Black's barking laugh.

"Ahh, who could forget the first day Lily told James she would never go out with him." Lupin chuckled.

"It was not my fault she blamed me for what that witch did!" Cassie could almost hear Potter pouting. She had never thought the incident had made such an impact on Potter. The whole school knew of Potters unreturned love for Lily, but Cassie had no idea she had been partly guilty. She almost felt bad. Almost.

"Speak of the devil," Black muttered. Cassie turned to see a girl with fierce red hair brushing past her and seating herself next to Black. The faint smell of lavender followed her, and Cassie instantly knew it had to be Lily Evans, the know-it-all Gryffindor who Snape would never shut up about. Lily this, Lily that, Lily is a born potions genius. Cassie rolled her eyes. She felt like she knew Evans already, just by listening to Snape.

"Hello Remus," Evans greeted. "Sirius, Peter, what's up?"

"Good day to you my dear Lily flower, you smell wonderful this fair morning." Potter's voice had drastically changed into something that resembled an aristocrat on helium. A small chuckle escaped Cassie's lips, and she quickly disguised it by sneezing. Lily, however, ignored Potter.

"So, Sirius, have you talked to this mystery girl of yours yet?" Lily asked and Potter made a laugh which came out a bit too shrill. However, Cassie's attention was suddenly peaked.

"I haven't seen her all day," Black sighed, "I tell you, it's difficult to find someone you don't know anything about."

"At least you know she is not in Gryffindor," Lupin pointed out.

Cassie felt her insides go warm. He had been looking for her too! She instantly forgot all about not her resolution to stop thinking about him. He obviously thought of her! Well, not exactly her, more like Blond Cassie, but in all fairness, Regular Cassie was indeed Blond Cassie as well as Regular Cassie. Going through all that logic in her head, she felt more of a Ravenclaw than ever before.

At that moment Cassie decided to do something rash and brave. Someone might even call it reckless. However, she was a Slytherin by blood and a Ravenclaw by mind. Now she wanted to find her inner lion. Thus, Cassie stood up and turned towards the Gryffindors. She cleared her throat and all five faces looked back at her.

She stood that way for a couple of seconds, having no clue as to what to do next. This was really foolish. What had she been thinking? She should have made a plan. She should have used her newfound Ravenclaw mind to calculate a funny, but sophisticated remark. However, when Cassie opened her mouth, nothing came out.

The sight of Black had startled her. It was so unusual to see him without the scowl he always saved for Regular Cassie. Lupin looked at her with a bewildered expression, as did potter Potter, but Evans seemed to have a knowing look in her eyes. Ratface just had his usual rat-like expression, but panic was creeping over Cassie. She looked down in horror and noticed that her nails had started to turn white. Keep it together, Cass, think of something to say. Anything!

"It is you!" Black exclaimed and the ice was broken.

"I believe you have been looking for me," Cassie said playfully, trying to connect to her other, flirty self.

"Well," said Black, tossing his hair out of his eyes and smirking. "We did leave yesterday quite unresolved."

"I believe we did," Blond Cassie said, smiling as innocently as she could. Black chuckled and kept her gaze. Her belly tingled and her knees felt wobbly. She looked back into his eyes, and for a moment it felt like they were the only ones in the whole Great Hall. Then their moment was broken.

"Hi! I'm Lily Evans," Evans said, reaching out her hand. Cassie wanted to snap at her and say 'I know'. Instead, she smiled.

"Nice to meet you, Lily. I'm Cassie." She realized her mistake a little too late. "-dy. Cassidy. Maggie Cassidy," she said, hoping against hope that no one had noticed her slip up.

"Maggie Cassidy," Black mused. "This will be fun." Then he winked.

Indeed, the game was on.


End file.
